NIH FIRST at Icahn Mount Sinai is led by a multidisciplinary team of renowned investigators. The 12 new faculty that we hire will, based on their scientific foci and expertise, be sorted into four clusters (neuroscience, health equity, cancer, and microbiology) within The Friedman Brain Institute, the Institute for Health Equity Research, The Tisch Cancer Institute, and the Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute. Leaders from across the institution are deeply committed to the success of these faculty and the NIH FIRST program overall.
Administrative Core
The Administrative Core is composed of the Principal Investigator (PI) and Multiple Principal Investigators (MPIs) and oversees all aspects of administration, communication, and overall conduct of the FIRST Cohort program at Icahn Mount Sinai.
PI/MPIs
- Emma K. Benn, DrPH
Principal Investigator
Founding Director, Center for Scientific Diversity
Associate Dean, Faculty Well-Being and Development
Associate Professor, Population Health Science and Policy - Lynne D. Richardson, MD
Multiple Principal Investigator
Core Director, Administrative Core
Founding Co-Director, Institute for Health Equity Research
Professor; Emergency Medicine, Population Health Science and Policy, Artificial Intelligence and Human Health - Eric J. Nestler, MD, PhD
Multiple Principal Investigator
Nash Family Professor of Neuroscience
Director, The Friedman Brain Institute
Dean for Academic Affairs
Chief Scientific Officer - Kirk Campbell, MD
Multiple Principal Investigator
Vice Chair; Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Department of Medicine
Director, Nephrology Fellowship Program
Professor, Nephrology
Core Directors
In addition to the Administrative Core, The NIH FIRST program is governed by the Faculty Development Core and the Evaluation Core.
- Lauren Peccoralo, MD, MPH
Core Director, Faculty Development Core
Senior Associate Dean, Faculty Well-Being and Development
Associate Professor of Medicine; General Internal Medicine, Medical Education - Benjamin K. Chen, MD, PhD
Core Director, Faculty Development Core
Vice Chair, Research, Department of Medicine
The Irene and Dr. Arthur M. Fishberg Professor of Medicine; Infectious Diseases
Professor; Microbiology, Pharmacological Sciences
Associate Director, Medical Scientist Training Program - Nihal E. Mohamed, PhD
Core Director, Evaluation Core
Director, Patient Education and Behavioral Research, Department of Urology
Associate Professor; Psychology, Urology - Uraina Clark, PhD
Core Director, Evaluation Core
Associate Professor, Neurology
Faculty Development Core
The Faculty Development Core is responsible for designing and implementing a comprehensive, equitable mentorship and professional development program to support the research success of our new research faculty.
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Lauren Peccoralo, MD, MPH
Core Director, Faculty Development Core
Senior Associate Dean, Faculty Well-Being and Development
Associate Professor of Medicine; General Internal Medicine, Medical Education -
Benjamin K. Chen, MD, PhD
Core Director, Faculty Development Core
Vice Chair, Research, Department of Medicine
The Irene and Dr. Arthur M. Fishberg Professor of Medicine; Infectious Diseases
Professor; Microbiology, Pharmacological Sciences
Associate Director, Medical Scientist Training Program - Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH
Senior Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Associate Professor, Medical Education
Assistant Professor, Pediatrics - Cardinale Smith, MD, PhD
Professor, Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology
Professor, Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine - Amy S. Kelley, MD, MSHS
Senior Associate Dean, Gender Equity in Research Affairs
Professor, Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine - Jacqueline Hargrove, PhD
Assistant Professor and Clinical Director, Psychology
Evaluation Core
The Evaluation Core is responsible for assessing the effectiveness and impact of the FIRST program at Mount Sinai through rigorous, multi-level, iterative evaluation.
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Nihal E. Mohamed, PhD
Core Director, Evaluation Core
Director, Patient Education and Behavioral Research, Department of Urology
Associate Professor; Psychology, Urology -
Uraina Clark, PhD
Core Director, Evaluation Core
Associate Professor, Neurology - Tracy M. Layne, PhD, MPH
Assistant Professor; Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Science, and Population Health Science and Policy - Sarah J. Miller, PsyD
Assistant Professor, Population Health Science and Policy, Family Medicine and Community Health, and Oncological Sciences
Director, Faculty Diversity and Inclusion, Center for Scientific Diversity - Jamilia Sly, PhD
Assistant Professor; Population Health Science and Policy, Family Medicine and Community Health, and Oncological Sciences
Cluster Oversight Committee
The Cluster Oversight Comittee comprises prominent researchers from the Institute for Health Equity Research, The Friedman Brain Institute, The Tisch Cancer Institute, and the Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute whose overall goal is to facilitate the research success and professional development of the clusters in their respective Institutes.
Health Equity: Institute for Health Equity Research
- Carol R. Horowitz, MD, MPH
Founding Director, Institute for Health Equity Research
Dean, Gender Equity in Science and Medicine
Professor, Population Health Policy and Science
Professor of Medicine, General Internal Medicine - Luz Claudio, PhD
Professor, Environmental Medicine and Public Health
Chief, Division of International Health
Infectious Diseases and Microbiology: Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute
- Adolfo Garcia-Sastre, PhD
Director, Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute
Professor; Microbiology, and Pathology, Molecular, and Cell-Based Medicine
Professor of Medicine; Infectious Diseases - Viviana A. Simon, MD, PhD
Professor; Microbiology, and Pathology, Molecular, and Cell-Based Medicine
Professor of Medicine; Infectious Diseases
Neuroscience: Friedman Brain Institute
- Yasmin Hurd, PhD
Director, Addiction Institute at Mount Sinai
Ward-Coleman Chair of Translational Neuroscience
Professor; Pharmacological Sciences, Neuroscience, and Psychiatry - Barbara G. Vickrey, MD, MPH
Chair and Professor of Neurology
Cancer: The Tisch Cancer Institute
- Ramon Parsons, MD, PhD
Director, The Tisch Cancer Institute
Ward-Coleman Chair of Cancer Research
Chair, Oncological Sciences
Director, Mount Sinai Cancer
Mount Sinai Health System - Emanuela Taioli, MD, PhD
Director, Institute for Translational Epidemiology
Director, Center for Thoracic Diseases Outcomes
Co-Leader, Cancer Prevention and Control Program, Tisch Cancer Center
Associate Director, Population Science
Professor; Population Health Science and Policy, and Thoracic Surgery
Faculty Mentors
The Faculty Mentors are leading researchers from each of the participating Institutes. Several faculty mentors work closely with each of the FIRST faculty to support their career development and advancement.
Health Equity Cluster; Institute for Health Equity Research (IHER)
- Nina Bickell, MD
- Alex Federman, MD
- Eimear Kenny, PhD
- Henry Sacks, MD, PhD
- Rachel Vreeman, MD, MS
- Juan Wisnivesky, MD, DrPH
Cancer Cluster; The Tisch Cancer Institute (TCI)
Neuroscience Cluster; The Friedman Brain Institute (FBI)
- Denise Cai, PhD
- Xiaosi Gu, PhD
- Helen Mayberg, MD
- Ian S. Maze, PhD
- Scott J. Russo, PhD
- Daniela Schiller, PhD
- Anne Schaefer, MD, PhD
- Venetia Zachariou, PhD
Infectious Disease and Microbiology Cluster; Global Health and Emerging Pathogens Institute (GHEPI)
- Ana Fernandez-Sesma, PhD
- Catarina E. Hioe, PhD
- Florian Krammer, PhD
- Benhur Lee, MD
- Domenico Tortorella, PhD
External Advisory Board
Our External Advisory Board is composed of leading researchers and health care professionals who are deeply committed to the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Mimsie Robinson
Chairman, Beth-Hark Christian Counseling Center, Inc.
Member, Mount Sinai Community Action Board - Luisel Ricks-Santi, PhD
Associate Professor, Pharmacotherapy & Translational Research, University of Florida - Craig Cameron, PhD
Professor and Chair of Microbiology and Immunology
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill - Somnath Saha, MD, MPH
Professor, Medicine, General Medicine and Geriatrics
Oregon Health and Science University School of Medicine
- Erich Jarvis, PhD
Professor, Neurobiology
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute
The Rockefeller University
- Helena Hansen, MD, PhD
Professor and Chair, Research Theme in Translational Social Science and Health Equity, University of California Los Angeles - Robert Winn, MD
Director, Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center Support
Outreach Partners
Our Outreach Partners include professional societies and academic institutions that have enthusiastically agreed to collborate with us as partners in outreach and recruitment of FIRST faculty candidates.